Author(s) Guidelines

Frontiers in Plant Biotechnology

Frontiers in Plant Biotechnology, published by Verdeco Technologies, welcomes high-quality original research and scholarly contributions that advance understanding and application of plant biotechnology. The following guidelines are designed to provide authors with a clear and transparent framework for manuscript preparation, submission, peer review, and publication. The policies incorporate widely accepted scholarly publishing principles, including responsible authorship, disclosure of conflicts of interest, research integrity, and transparent reporting.

1. Scope of the Journal

The journal publishes research and scholarly articles covering a broad range of plant biotechnology, including:

  • Plant tissue culture and micropropagation
  • In vitro plant regeneration and conservation
  • Plant genetic transformation and genome editing
  • Molecular biology and plant genomics
  • Plant breeding and molecular breeding
  • Plant–microbe interactions
  • Plant biotechnology for stress tolerance
  • Crop improvement and agricultural biotechnology
  • Plant secondary metabolites and metabolic engineering
  • Plant bioinformatics and computational biology
  • Conservation biotechnology and biodiversity
  • Medicinal, aromatic, and economically important plants
  • Molecular markers and genetic diversity
  • Plant-derived biomaterials and bio-products
  • Biotechnology applications for climate resilience and sustainable agriculture

Interdisciplinary studies combining biotechnology with agriculture, horticulture, ecology, environmental science, or related fields are particularly encouraged.

2. Types of Manuscripts

The journal considers the following categories:

  1. Original Research  – Complete reports of novel experimental or analytical research.
  2. Review Articles – Comprehensive and critical evaluations of established or emerging research areas.
  3. Mini Reviews – Concise reviews addressing focused and rapidly developing topics.
  4. Short Communications – Brief reports of significant findings that can be communicated concisely.
  5. Methods/Protocols – Novel or substantially improved methodologies relevant to plant biotechnology.
  6. Editorials and Perspectives – Scholarly opinions or discussions of emerging issues in plant biotechnology.

3. Originality and Exclusive Submission

Manuscripts must contain original work and should not have been published previously or be under consideration by another journal.

Authors should disclose any closely related manuscripts, conference papers, preprints, theses, or previous reports that could constitute overlapping or redundant publication. Submission to more than one journal simultaneously is not permitted. Transparent disclosure of related publications helps editors assess potential duplication appropriately. (ICMJE)

4. Manuscript Preparation

Manuscripts should be written in clear, concise, and scientifically appropriate English. Authors should use consistent terminology, units, abbreviations, nomenclature, and formatting throughout the manuscript.

For original research, the recommended structure is:

  1. Title
  2. Authors and affiliations
  3. Abstract
  4. Keywords
  5. Introduction
  6. Materials and Methods
  7. Results
  8. Discussion
  9. Conclusion
  10. Author Contributions
  11. Funding
  12. Conflict of Interest
  13. Data Availability
  14. Acknowledgments
  15. References

The conventional Introduction–Methods–Results–Discussion (IMRAD) structure is widely used for reporting original research and may be adapted where appropriate to the nature of the study. (ICMJE)

5. Title Page

The title page should include:

  • Full manuscript title
  • Full names of all authors
  • Institutional affiliations
  • Department, institution, city, country
  • ORCID iDs, where available
  • Corresponding author's name
  • Corresponding author's institutional email address
  • Postal address and other contact information where required

The corresponding author is responsible for communication with the journal and should ensure that all submission requirements and author information are complete and accurate. (ICMJE)

6. Abstract and Keywords

The abstract should briefly describe:

  • Background and rationale
  • Objectives
  • Methods
  • Major results
  • Principal conclusions

For original research articles, an abstract of approximately 150–300 words is recommended.

Authors should provide 4–8 keywords, avoiding unnecessary repetition of words already used in the title.

7. Introduction

The Introduction should:

  • Present the scientific background.
  • Explain the importance of the research problem.
  • Summarize relevant previous research.
  • Identify the knowledge gap.
  • Clearly state the objectives or hypotheses of the study.

Authors should avoid an unnecessarily lengthy literature review.

8. Materials and Methods

The Methods section should contain sufficient information to allow qualified researchers to understand and, where appropriate, reproduce the study.

For plant biotechnology research, authors should clearly report relevant details such as:

  • Plant material and source
  • Cultivar, variety, accession, or genotype
  • Explant type and developmental stage
  • Culture medium and composition
  • Plant growth regulators and concentrations
  • Culture conditions
  • Experimental design
  • Number of biological and technical replicates
  • Molecular, biochemical, or physiological methods
  • Statistical procedures
  • Software used for analysis
  • Relevant permits, approvals, or collection information

Scientific names should be presented accurately and consistently.

9. Results

Results should be presented logically and objectively. Authors should distinguish clearly between observations, statistical findings, and interpretation.

Tables and figures should complement the text rather than repeat the same information. Appropriate statistical measures should be reported, and statistical significance should not be claimed without adequate supporting analysis.

10. Discussion

The Discussion should interpret the findings in relation to previous research. Authors should explain the significance of their results, identify similarities or differences with earlier studies, discuss possible mechanisms where appropriate, and acknowledge important limitations.

The Discussion should not simply repeat the Results.

11. Conclusion

The Conclusion should provide a concise statement of the principal findings and their scientific or practical significance. Where appropriate, authors may identify future research directions or potential applications.

12. Tables and Figures

Tables and figures should be numbered consecutively and cited in the manuscript.

Tables:
Each table should have a clear title and sufficient explanatory information. Data should not unnecessarily be presented both in tables and in the main text.

Figures:
Figures should be of appropriate quality and clearly labelled. Microscopic images, photographs, graphs, diagrams, and molecular images should include appropriate scale bars, legends, units, and labels where applicable.

Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to reproduce copyrighted material where necessary. (ICMJE)

13. Statistical Analysis

Authors should select statistical methods appropriate to their experimental design and clearly describe:

  • Experimental units
  • Sample size
  • Number of replicates
  • Statistical tests
  • Significance level
  • Software or statistical package
  • Measures of variation
  • Appropriate post-hoc comparisons where applicable

Authors should avoid pseudoreplication and should distinguish biological replication from technical replication.

14. References

References should be relevant, accurate, and sufficiently current. Every reference cited in the text should appear in the reference list, and every reference in the reference list should be cited in the manuscript.

The journal may adopt an author–date reference style for consistency across plant biotechnology publications. Authors should use DOI information where available.

15. Authorship and Author Contributions

Authorship should be based on substantial intellectual or practical contributions to the research, participation in manuscript preparation or critical revision, approval of the final version, and accountability for the integrity of the work.

Individuals who provide only general supervision, funding, technical assistance, language editing, or administrative support should not automatically be listed as authors and may instead be acknowledged where appropriate. (ICMJE)

Authors should provide an Author Contributions Statement, for example:

Author Contributions: A.B. conceived the study. A.B. and C.D. conducted the experiments. C.D. performed the statistical analysis. A.B. prepared the manuscript. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript.

16. Funding Statement

All financial support for the research should be disclosed. Authors should identify the funding organization and, where applicable, the grant or project number.

If the study received no specific funding, authors may state:

Funding: This research received no specific external funding.

Funding disclosure should distinguish direct support for the reported research from general institutional support. (ICMJE)

17. Conflict of Interest

Authors must disclose any financial, professional, personal, institutional, or other relationships that could influence—or reasonably be perceived to influence—the research or its interpretation. Transparent disclosure supports confidence in the scientific record. (ICMJE)

Where no conflict exists:

Conflict of Interest: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

18. Research Ethics and Integrity

Authors must conduct and report research responsibly and honestly. The journal does not tolerate:

  • Fabrication or falsification of data
  • Plagiarism
  • Duplicate or redundant publication
  • Manipulation of images or experimental results
  • Improper authorship
  • Undisclosed conflicts of interest
  • Unethical research practices

Where research involves regulated plant material, genetically modified organisms, protected species, field collection, or other regulated activities, authors should provide relevant permits or approval information where applicable.

19. Data Availability

Authors are encouraged to make underlying data, datasets, sequences, protocols, software, and other research materials available through suitable repositories whenever possible.

A Data Availability Statement should be included, for example:

Data Availability: The datasets generated or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Where data are deposited in a public repository, authors should provide the appropriate accession number or persistent identifier.

20. Use of Artificial Intelligence

Authors may use AI-assisted tools for appropriate purposes such as language improvement, grammar correction, formatting, or assistance with non-substantive tasks. However, AI tools should not replace the authors' responsibility for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and scientific interpretation of the manuscript.

AI tools should not be listed as authors. Where AI has made a substantive contribution to manuscript preparation or content generation, authors should disclose its use according to the journal's policy. Current scholarly guidance emphasizes transparency and author responsibility regarding AI-assisted work.

21. Peer Review

All suitable manuscripts will undergo editorial assessment followed by peer review. The journal may use single-blind, double-blind, or another clearly stated review model.

Reviewers are expected to provide objective, constructive, confidential, and scientifically justified evaluations. Reviewers must disclose potential conflicts of interest and should not use unpublished information obtained during peer review for personal or professional advantage.

22. Cover Letter

Each submission should be accompanied by a cover letter containing:

  • Manuscript title
  • Article type
  • Brief statement of significance
  • Confirmation that the manuscript is original
  • Confirmation that it is not under consideration elsewhere
  • Disclosure of conflicts of interest
  • Funding information
  • Confirmation that all authors have approved the submission

Authors should also disclose any previous submission or closely related publication when relevant.

23. Copyright and Open Access

Frontiers in Plant Biotechnology is intended to operate as an open-access scholarly journal, allowing readers to access published research freely.

The journal should clearly state its selected Creative Commons license and copyright arrangement on the journal website and article pages. A recommended policy is:

Copyright: Authors retain copyright of their work and grant Frontiers in Plant Biotechnology the right of first publication. Articles are published under a Creative Commons license, permitting appropriate reuse with attribution, subject to the terms of the selected license.

Important: The exact Creative Commons license and any Article Processing Charge (APC) should be finalized by the journal before publication and stated consistently on the website, submission system, and published articles.

24. Publication Charges

Article Processing Charges (APCs)

APCs will be charged for accepted articles.

Local: PKRs. 20,000

International: US$ 99

25. Plagiarism and Similarity Screening

Submitted manuscripts may be screened for plagiarism, excessive similarity, duplicate publication, and inappropriate reuse of previously published material not more than 18%.

A similarity report is considered an editorial screening tool rather than an automatic determination of misconduct. The editorial team may request clarification or revisions where substantial overlap is identified.

26. Corrections, Retractions, and Post-Publication Issues

The journal is committed to maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the published scientific record. Where necessary, corrections, expressions of concern, or retractions may be issued following appropriate editorial investigation.

Authors are expected to cooperate with the journal if significant errors or concerns are identified after publication.

27. Privacy and Confidentiality

Personal information submitted to the journal, including author contact details, reviewer information, and correspondence, will be used for editorial and publication-related purposes.

Manuscripts under review are confidential. Reviewers and editors should not disclose or use unpublished information obtained through the peer-review process.

28. Submission Checklist

Before submitting a manuscript, authors should confirm that:

  • The manuscript fits the journal's scope.
  • The manuscript is original and is not under consideration elsewhere.
  • All authors have approved the final manuscript.
  • Author names and affiliations are complete and accurate.
  • A corresponding author has been identified.
  • Abstract and keywords are provided.
  • Figures and tables are appropriately numbered and cited.
  • Statistical methods are adequately described.
  • References are complete and consistently formatted.
  • Funding has been disclosed.
  • Conflicts of interest have been declared.
  • Author contributions have been provided.
  • Data availability has been addressed.
  • Ethical approvals or permits are reported where applicable.
  • Permissions have been obtained for copyrighted material.
  • AI use has been disclosed where applicable.
  • A suitable cover letter accompanies the submission.

Suggested final website statement

Authors are encouraged to carefully read these guidelines before submitting a manuscript to Frontiers in Plant Biotechnology. Submission of a manuscript indicates that the authors have read and agreed to the journal's editorial, ethical, authorship, copyright, and publication policies. The journal reserves the right to return manuscripts that do not meet the required scientific, ethical, or formatting standards.